Forgotten Phantoms
by Earthbrat
Summary: Jareth's reign as the Goblin King is over. He chooses to be sent to the Aboveground to start a new life with no memories of his life as King. While Aboveground, he takes up acting, where he meets the girl who fueled the choice behind his fate I know, th
1. Choices Prologue

Hello everyone. This is my first Labyrinth fanfic. I got the idea from the end of a fic called "Choices" by Nugrey. This fic is my idea of what I would have liked to have seen happen. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Labyrinth or any characters or lines from the movie that might pop up in this story.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Forgotten Phantoms

Prologue

Jareth stood before the council of Elders. The day had finally come, just as he had always known it would. His time as King of the Goblins was over.

It hadn't even been a year since his Labyrinth was defeated when he woke up and felt his powers over the kingdom waning. He was immediately brought in front of the Elders, where he remained now, waiting to be stripped of his title and taken by the spirits to become one of their own.

The Goblin King stared straight out into nothingness as the High Elder stood and cleared her throat, calling for attention.

"Jareth, King of the Goblin Kingdom and Keeper of the Labyrinth," she spoke, her voice clear and powerful. "Your time in this world is up. Your Labyrinth was defeated and with its end comes the end of your rein."

"Yes my lady," said Jareth, all the arrogance gone from his voice. He remained staring off into nothingness, a shell of the powerful king that once was.

The High Elder remained silent for a moment, looking at the man before her with pursed lips. Finally she spoke:

"You must now make a choice Jareth."

Jareth seemed to snap back to life, surprised. 'A choice? No one has ever been given a choice before.'

"You may choose to become one of the spirits that protect this world; or..." she paused, staring straight into his eyes. "You may choose to be sent to the Aboveground, where you will begin a new life with no memories of your life here."

Jareth's mind suddenly began to reel. He could choose to live in the Aboveground. _She_ was in the Aboveground. Jareth quickly shoved those thoughts out of his mind and replaced them with confusion.

"I don't mean any disrespect my lady, but why are you giving me this choice?"

The High Elder smiled. "You might try to deny it Jareth, but your heart yearns for something that it could never have during your long years as King. We are giving you the chance to find it, to find _her_."

Jareth's heart started to pound in his ears. 'The fools,' he thought. 'I feel nothing towards the brat. She was just a plaything that happened to beat me at my own game.' _Liar, _the voice in his head spit, _you can't even convince yourself anymore._

The council stared at him, waiting for his decision.

'But I won't even remember her. What if I don't find her?' _No, you will find her. You have to find her._

"I have to find her," he whispered.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, there you have it, the prologue of "Forgotten Phantoms." Really this chapter doesn't have much to do with the rest of the story. It's just setting everything up, so it might feel a little choppy, but don't worry, it gets better. Please review and come back for the next chapter.


	2. A truck filled with deja vu

Ta Da! Here it is: the second chapter of Forgotten Phantoms! It sure took me long enough. I'm sorry about the long wait, I have been so busy and I haven't had a moment to sit down and write. But here it is now. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth or any characters or lines from it. I also don't own The Phantom of the Opera or anything from it, although I wish I did (Gerard Butler and his voice drool)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Forgotten Phantoms

Chapter 1

Jareth's eyes snapped open and he sat up in his bed. He looked around the small bedroom of his apartment and breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that everything was as it should be. It was that dream again. He didn't understand why it still freaked him out; he had been having that same dream almost every night for the last six years. His parents and little sister died in a car crash when he was nineteen and from then on, that dream just kept haunting him in his sleep.

Jareth sighed again and glanced at the clock. It was 9:30 in the morning. Jareth groaned and rolled out of bed. He had to be at rehearsal by 10:30, so if he wanted to be there on time, he'd better get a move on. The 25-year-old quickly showered and dressed, popping a piece of toast into his mouth as he glanced over his script. By 10:15 he was out the door of his small, one bedroom apartment and on the streets of New York City. He strolled down the street, letting everyone who saw him know that he was the shit and he knew it. He came to a small studio theatre, their rehearsal space for the moment. He opened the door and walked inside.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sarah Williams sat in one of the hard, plastic chairs provided for the actors, trying to appear confident, but nervously fidgeting whenever she thought no one was looking. She hated first rehearsals. The lack of alliances and the judgment of the bitter made her feel like a kitten, lost, alone, and afraid. Sarah glanced around the room, searching for a familiar or friendly face, but all she found where the sneers of the jealous, the stares of the curious, and the cold, confidant looks that she hoped others were seeing on her own face.

Sarah caught some movement towards the door and turned to look. There, she found herself staring at one of the most extraordinary men she had ever seen. He was tall, almost a head taller than her, with blonde hair that appeared almost white under the harsh florescent lights. His face was sharp and angular, completed with a pair of mismatched eyes- one grey and one blue. He was (despite the cliché) devastatingly handsome, but at the same time, he was surrounded by a dark, haunting beauty. Sarah was enthralled.

'Who is he?' she thought to herself, never taking her eyes from the man in front of her. 'Is he an actor? I wonder what part he's playing.'

Suddenly, the man turned his head and Sarah found herself staring into his pale eyes. For a brief second, she was filled with panic and tried to turn away, but before she could, a cold rush went through her body, leaving her feeling as if she had been hit by a truck filled with déjà vu. She stared at the blond man across the room, her eyes wide and shocked. His eyes were equally wide and his already pale skin was a shade paler.

'What the hell was that?' Sarah's mind screamed. She jumped up and was ready to run from the room when the director suddenly walked in, clapping his hands and calling for attention. The sudden noise caused Sarah to break the staring contest going on with the strange man and when she looked back, he had gathered his composure and was watching the director as if nothing had happened. Sarah stared at him for a few moments longer, blinking owlishly, very confused, before she turned back to the director to listen to what he was saying.

"Hello everyone," he began. "Welcome to the first rehearsal of the Broadway production of "The Phantom of the Opera." There was a moment of applause from the actors before he continued, "To begin with, I am Carl Stevens, your director. I am very excited to be directing "The Phantom of the Opera." It has been my favorite show for a very long time and I am looking forward to turning it into the masterpiece that I know it is. I am also looking forward to working with all of you. We have a wonderful cast with us; from our wonderful chorus members to our extraordinary leads, beginning with our Phantom, who is being played by Jareth Nissekonge." He made a sweeping hand motion towards the captivating blonde, who simply nodded. Hearing his name struck Sarah with another sense of déjà vu. She knew this man from somewhere, but she couldn't figure out where. She was busy trying to remember when she realized that her director was speaking again.

"Now for our lovely leading lady, Christine, we have the equally lovely Sarah Williams," he made another sweeping motion towards Sarah. She smiled softly as the rest of the group clapped politely. She risked another glance at the blond man, Jareth, only to find his mismatched eyes looking at her strangely.

'Oh shit,' Sarah thought to herself, 'he must think I'm some stalker-freak now. Great first impression Sarah.' The director continued to introduce to rest of the cast, oblivious to the energy between his two leads and the turmoil going on in Sarah's head. Sarah sat ramrod-straight in her chair, hairs still standing in remembrance of the first time her eyes met her new costar. She could see the new Phantom out of the corner of her eye. He sat calmly as if nothing had happened. Sarah began to wonder if she was the only one to feel it. A sudden flurry of motion caused her to come back to earth. Everyone in the room was suddenly standing and beginning to move around. After a moment of confusion, Sarah realized that the director had finished and rehearsal was beginning. She blushed slightly. 'Oops, I just spaced out on Carl's entire speech. What is with me today?'

Sarah stood and began mingling, meeting a few new faces, including her costar, Seth, who was playing Raoul. She was continuing to walk around the room when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to find Jareth standing in front of her.

He smiled a smug smile, looked her up and down, and said, "So, you must be the Sarah they chose for Christine."

'Ew,' Sarah thought. She did not like the smug attitude he was giving, as if her playing Christine was so preposterous that he had to come find out for himself. She raised an eyebrow and said, "Yes, and you must be the Jareth they chose for the Phantom."

He smiled and said, "Like what you see?" He spread his arms, as if to give her a good look. Sarah sneered slightly.

"Not really," she said. He dropped his arms, but didn't stop smiling.

"Oh really, those stares you were giving me from across the room say differently."

"That's because I've never seen someone so... what's the word... unusual-looking as you before."

His smile faltered a little, but stayed in place. Impressive. "That's not what they usually say," he grinned.

"Oh," Sarah shot back, "and who would 'they' be? Do you work with blind people?" That wiped the smile right off his face. Sarah allowed herself a tiny smile of triumph, until...

"Well, I thought Christine was supposed to be a sweet, naïve little girl, not a cold bitch." That got Sarah's already hot blood boiling.

"Well, the Phantom is supposed to be a crazy, controlling, egotistical ass, so I guess they cast that role perfectly," she spit. A crowd was beginning to gather so the director chose that moment to intervene.

"Okay ladies and gentlemen," he hurried, clapping his hands. "Enough chatting, it's time to start our first rehearsal." 'Oh boy,' he thought to himself as Sarah and Jareth stormed off in opposite directions, 'this is going to be a long six weeks.'

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yay, it's done. Again, I am soooo sorry that I took so long getting this chapter out. I got super busy and lost interest in the story, partially because I had to change my whole story plan, because my original was just weird. I've actually had half of this chapter just sitting there forever, but yesterday morning I woke up with an intense urge to write more of this story. That feeling intensified when I watched the movie-version of Phantom, which I hadn't seen yet. That gave me the inspiration I needed. I finished my plan for the story, so I'm hoping to have a few new chapters out in the next few weeks. I love you all for reviewing and being so patient.


	3. Pissy Perverts

Hi y'all. Here is the third chapter of "Forgotten Phantoms." I don't think this one will be very long. There isn't much to this chapter, but it sets up the next couple of chapters. So... enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth or the Phantom of the Opera or any characters of lines from it. Don't sue.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Forgotten Phantoms

Chapter 2

The pianist pounded the piano; her fingers flying over the keyboard, letting the quick, haunting melody fill the studio. Jareth and Sarah stood in the center of a circle of chairs, meant to represent the boat on the underground lake. Two weeks had gone by, most of the music had been learned and now the choreography and the blocking were being worked out. The actors were still stuck in the small studio theatre while the set was being built, but they made due with the chairs and tables as their sets and their scripts and the random contents of girls' purses for their props.

Jareth pulled Sarah close to him, her back leaning up against his chest. He let his fingers roam up the corset that she had pulled on over her shirt (so she can get used to singing with the corsets of her costumes). He caressed her stomach tenderly, singing:

Sing once again with me

Our strange duet...

My power over you

Grows stronger yet...

Sarah leaned her head back and closed her eyes, trying to look like he had her under some type of spell. She had to admit though, it wasn't hard. Shivers were running up her spine every time his fingers ran across her abdomen through the thick fabric of the corset. Her spine stiffened and her eyes shot open though, when she felt his fingers trace higher, caressing her right breast. She gasped, shot forward, and slapped him across the face.

"Pervert!" she screamed.

"Cut," Carl Stevens sighed. The tired director rubbed his eyes. He was beginning to get frustrated with his two leads. 'This is just not working,' he thought to himself bitterly.

Jareth rubbed his cheek. He was expecting her to react, but not like that. That might have been a little too much though. He wasn't usually a pervert like that. That girl just brought out the worst in him. When they first met, he had tried to make a move on her, but it ended up backfiring and it just snowballed from there. He knew that he didn't need to provoke her like that, but it was just so funny to see her get angry, at least until she fired back an insult and then it just morphed into an all-out battle between the two.

"Sorry," he smirked. "I just got caught up in the moment."

Sarah glared at the annoyingly smiley (yet annoyingly attractive) blond in front of her. "Bullshit. You know as well as I do that the Phantom wasn't a perv and wouldn't try to feel up Christine when she was vulnerable like that."

Jareth simply raised an eyebrow and said, "Who knows, if Christine was as... attractive as you, he might have not been able to contain himself."

Sarah felt her face heat up. She was blushing and they both knew it. He knew exactly which buttons to push to embarrass her, flatter her, and offend her all at the same time. "You slimeball! I..."

"ENOUGH!" a voice shot through, startling them both and making them both very aware that they were still in rehearsal. "I have had it with both of you!" Carl yelled. Everyone was shocked; they had never seen their director so angry. "You two need to leave right now! I want you to start learning to get along. If you don't, I will kick you both out of my show!"

Jareth and Sarah looked from Carl to each other, shocked. "OUT!" Carl screamed. Both young actors shot out of their pretend boat. They grabbed their things quickly and ran out of the studio.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Woo hoo! I'm on a roll. Another chapter down. This one ended up being a little longer than I had planned, still not very long though, but that's okay. Look for another chapter soon. Read and review. Thanks, love you all!


	4. Getting to know you hurts

Okay, big chapter. A lot of talking and little action, but a pivotal point in the relationship of Jareth and Sarah, along with a little background. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth or the Phantom of the Opera or any characters or lines from it. Don't sue.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sarah shot out the door of the studio theatre and out onto the street, followed closely by Jareth. She swung around, suddenly furious, "Thanks a lot you bastard! This is all your fault!"

"My fault," Jareth growled, his hand slapping his chest. "If you would only chill out a little and learn to take a joke we wouldn't be in this mess right now."

Sarah looked at him for a moment, trying to form coherent words, but her rage was clouding her mind. She finally threw her hands into the air and stormed off. Jareth turned and stormed off in the other direction. Sarah got about twenty steps before it hit her. Her rage was suddenly drained out of her and replaced with horror.

'Oh my god,' she thought, 'I just got kicked out of my show. I have been working towards this my entire life just to get kicked off because of some loser with a hot ass. I can't let that happen.' Sarah spun around and raced down the block towards Jareth.

"Jareth!" she yelled, trying to catch his attention. He ignored her though and continued walking. "Jareth!" she said again as she grabbed his shoulder, turning him around to face her.

"What!" he growled. He was still angry and not very eager to talk to her.

"Look," she reasoned. "I have worked too hard to get here to give it all up over some stupid feud. I'm willing to work all of this out, are you?"

Jareth looked at her for a moment. She looked determined. He realized, for the first time, what this show meant to her.

"This show really means a lot to you, doesn't it?" he asked.

"It means everything to me," she pleaded, her eyes showing sincerity and a little desperation.

"Ok," Jareth sighed. Sarah smiled. It was a nice smile, like she was seeing him for the first time.

"Thank you," she said softly. She led him into a nearby coffee shop, where she sat down on an overstuffed chair and nodded towards the couch across from her. Jareth sank down into the couch, unsure of where this conversation was going to take them.

"Well," Jareth cleared his throat. He wasn't sure where to start. "How did you get into acting?"

Sarah smiled, remembering, "I've wanted to be an actress for as long as I can remember. My mother was an actress and I guess I just inherited the gene. I was always the odd duck in school, always marching to the beat of a different drummer. Acting just gave me a place where people appreciated that about me. Even as I grew older and started to fit in more, the theatre always gave me a place to go and people who loved me however I was. How about you?"

"I'm not really sure," Jareth said. He thought back, trying to pinpoint a certain moment. "I was never into acting in high school. I wasn't really into anything in high school except music. I played the guitar and the piano and I spent all of my time in my room writing songs about pain and the chasm of my soul being bordered in darkness (A.N. Not my line. Aundrea, if you're reading this, that's for you). I guess I was emo before emo existed." He smiled. "I actually thought that the theatre was only for geeks and gay guys. After my family died though, the shock completely changed who I was and where I wanted to go in life. I literally woke up one morning, out of the blue, and decided that I wanted to be an actor."

"When did your family pass away?" Sarah asked softly, worried that she would hit a nerve.

"About six years ago. I was nineteen. My parents and my sister were on their way home from the mall or something when they were hit by another driver running a red light."

"That's horrible. I'm sorry."

Jareth smiled a little, "It's alright. To tell you the truth, I don't really remember them. I guess I kind of blocked out all of my memories from before they died. As a way to cope or something." He paused and a brief sadness passed in front of his eyes, breaking Sarah's heart. He looked up and smiled, the sadness pushed away, "So, you said your mom was an actress. Are you two pretty close?"

"No," Sarah said, her face becoming cold and bitter. "My mother left us when I was two. She thought that we were holding her back from her career. She'd call once or twice a year and make dozens of promises, but I only saw her maybe five times after she left. Then, when I was twelve, she died. She had cancer and never even bothered to tell any of us. That bitch...she knew for a year but never once contacted us, never once tried to say goodbye to me."

"I'm sorry," Jareth said, not really knowing what to say. "What about the rest of your family."

"I'm not very close to the rest of my family. My father remarried when I was ten and my stepmother and I hate each other. By the time I graduated from high school we were civil with each other, but neither one of us felt a need to see the other again. The only time I ever call them or see them is for my little brother Toby."

"You have a little brother?" Jareth asked and was glad to see the smile return to Sarah's face.

"Yeah, he's my half-brother. He's ten. I used to hate him. He was a spoiled, whiny brat that I always had to baby-sit. But then I had a dream once that I had almost lost him and it scared me so much that I realized how much I loved the brat. Now I would do just about anything for him."

"That seems to be the way siblings are," Jareth said. "We think we hate them and they make it so easy for us to think so, but in the end we would fight our darkest fears and give up our heart's desires to save them."

They looked at each other and smiled, a mutual understanding binding them. Jareth felt a cool chill creep up his spine. He was forgetting something. Something in their conversation had triggered some type of feeling or memory, he just couldn't figure out what it was. He assumed that it had something to do with his sister. Sarah had a slightly odd expression on her face too, like she was trying to remember something as well. An uncomfortable silence was falling over the two and the odd feeling started to freak Jareth out. He had to change the subject.

"Well, hopefully your career won't make you turn out like your mother."

Sarah's eyes shot open and she looked shocked. Horrified, Jareth mentally slapped himself. It was the first thing that came to his lips and as soon as he said it he knew what an asshole he was.

He expected Sarah to slap him and yell at him, which he deserved, but instead, she cried. He looked up to see tears in her eyes and it made him feel even worse. He never wanted to make her cry.

"Sarah, I..."

"No," Sarah said, cutting Jareth off. She stood up and grabbed her purse. "I was just starting to think that you might be a nice guy deep down, but you really are an ass to the core."

Jareth shot up, trying to stop her, "Sarah, please. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I just said the first stupid thing that came to me without thinking." It was too late though, Sarah was already out the door. Jareth sank down on the couch and buried his face in his hands.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sarah stormed down the street, tears streaming down her eyes. She couldn't believe he'd said that. What made it worse was that she had thought he was different. She thought they had a moment, a connection and she had seen the genuinely good person inside of him.

She stopped walking. For the second time that day Jareth had made her stop in the middle of a busy sidewalk and reevaluate her thoughts.

'Maybe he really is a good person. Yes, he shouldn't have said that, but he seemed genuinely horrified at what he said. Besides, Jareth says a lot of stupid things.' Sarah sighed, her sigh turning into a low growl of frustration. 'Fine, I'll give him one more chance, but if he messes up, we're finished. I don't care if I get kicked out of the show.' Sarah turned around and started back towards the café.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jareth was still sitting with his head in his hands when he sensed someone sitting down in the chair across from him. He looked up to see Sarah. Her face was streaked with tears, making his heart clench. She looked at him.

"Don't you think I've thought about that?" Sarah asked. "For years I have been terrified of turning out like her. She is everything I hate and don't want to be. But being with my little brother has taught me that family is more important than anything. More important than my dreams, my fears, or any petty feelings. I would never put my children through everything that my mother put me through."

"I know that Sarah, I really do. I never meant to hurt you," Jareth sputtered, trying to fix things.

Sarah stared at him, her expression stone cold, "Maybe you didn't mean to hurt me, but you did. I was actually beginning to think that you were a nice guy"

Jareth jumped off of the couch and got down onto his knees, leaning over the table, pretty much begging at this point.

"I am a nice guy. I really am. All of these stupid comments, I never meant any of them. I was just trying to piss you off. I'm actually not like that, not really anyways. Please Sarah, just give me another chance."

Sarah felt confused, "Why do you suddenly care so much? I had to beg you to come here."

"I know, but I never wanted to hurt you or make you cry and I want to make it up to you."

"Ok," Sarah sighed. Jareth smiled. He sat back on the couch. Sarah closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, a big smile appeared on her face.

"So, Jareth, whom I have never met before in my life, tell me about yourself."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes, this chapter is done! I'm sorry if it was long and/or kind of choppy, but I had to cover quite a bit of ground in this chapter. I'm also sorry it took me so long to write it. I've been really busy. I'm also going to be really busy for the next month or so, so I don't know if I'll be able to post another chapter for a little while. I will try though. Thank you all for your reviews, I love them and I love you all for sending them. Thanks.


End file.
